Accept Who You Are
by Ranger44
Summary: Oliver is contemplating giving up the hood. Chase had shown him who he really was and he didn't deserve to gather the hope of the people of Star City. Caitlin is broken. She fears what Killer Frost may do if she reveals herself and so remains cautious and reserved. What happens when the two interact more and more. Will something come of the growing friendship?
1. Chapter 1

Heyo guys, so I've decided to create a different story for a different fandom because honestly, I'm sorry to say this, but I've lost interest in Criminal Minds. Now I'll keep writing those stories and continue them, but it just maybe won't be super frequently. Anyways, now I start another story for a fandom I have been apart of since the beginning. I don't really know why I chose to pair these two together. There isn't ever on screen chemistry since they never have scenes together, but something about the two just intrigues me. So hopefully you guys enjoy! There isn't a set timeline that I'm following here. I don't own the rights, characters, etc. for Arrow or Flash or the comic books or anything.

 _Star City, Unknown_

Oliver was beaten. Not so much physically, yes, he had wounds that were painful, but he was more beaten mentally and emotionally. Chase had gotten under his skin. Oliver always played things like he was ok and that nothing ever bothered him, but Chase had done it. There had never once before, been a moment that Oliver looked so broken. He couldn't go back to the team. He wouldn't allow them to see him so shattered.

 _Central City, S.T.A.R. Labs_

Caitlin sighed as she looked down at the time. "Two in the morning." She was the only one in STAR Labs as everyone had retired for the day. She had only stayed behind because of the fear that Amunet was hunting her, she didn't take kindly to those who left. It was these fears that caused her eyes to change to ice when she heard the elevator ding. Caitlin fought to regain control before checking to see who it was only to walk into a bloody and beaten Oliver Queen. As if he was fighting to stay awake only until he found someone, at the sight of her, he collapsed. "Oliver!"

Oliver awoke to the sound of familiar beeps and scent of a hospital. His vision was blurry, his entire body ached, and he still couldn't recall how he had gotten to where he was. The last thing he could remember was having the thought to leave Star City. Oliver groaned as he felt something shift their weight across his aching legs. He fought the temptation to cry out as he tried to sit up until the weight on his legs disappeared and a familiar voice told him, "Don't move!" Instantly, his body froze. Soon, he felt someone dropping something into his eyes and after blinking a few times, his vision came back to see a very concerned Caitlin Snow looking at him.

"What happened?" Oliver asked as he still couldn't recall how he had gotten anywhere. Being is STAR Labs just confused him even more.

"I was hoping you could tell me. I hear the elevator ding and the next thing I know is there's a bloodied Green Arrow lying in front of me."

"I… I don't know" Oliver sighed as he became aggravated at the memory loss. Caitlin looked at him with kind eyes, not ones of pity or weariness, but of sympathy and understanding. Oliver caught himself losing a breath as he studied her for the first time. How had he missed how beautiful she was before. Caitlin watched as he stared at her, assuming he was in his own thoughts, she asked him a question.

"Do you wanna talk about what happened to you?"

"No." Oliver stated flatly. This time, it was Caitlin who sighed.

"Well, I better at least go call Team Arrow, if you're hurt here, I'm sure they're worried about you."

"Please don't." Caitlin froze. She had never heard such desperation or despair from Oliver Queen. He was usually so calm and collected, offering to be other's rock when they struggled. She turned to look at him and he read the confusion on her face. "I can't… I don't want them to see me like this, not good for team morale, you know?" Oliver added the last part to cover up the fact that he was just scared for his team to see him in such a broken condition. Thankfully Caitlin seemed to buy it as she sat down once again next to him.

"Well…" She took a small break in her sentence, studying him, "Do you wanna say how you feel?" She asked while touching his leg. His usual facade broke and he winced in pain. He couldn't lie to her, he knew she already saw the grimace.

"In pain." He stated. She looked at him, expecting him to say more, but Oliver remained quiet.

"Well," Caitlin started before Oliver cut her off.

"What time is it?"

"Almost 9, why?"

"Barry and the rest of the team is going to be here soon. I don't want to be here when they arrive."

"Are you crazy? You've got God knows how many injuries and you can't even hide the pain when I tap your leg, how in the world are you going to get out of bed and leave." Caitlin looked at him bewildered.

"Watch me." Oliver gave a determined look before replacing it with pain. He felt his entire body on fire as he pushed himself up. Every fiber in his body wanted him to stop, but just like he didn't want Team Arrow to see him, he didn't want Team Flash to see him either.

"Oliver, as your doctor for the moment, I strongly advise you to stay. Your body needs time to heal." Caitlin looked at him like she was begging. They may not have known each other well, but he was still someone she looked up to. His natural tendency to remain calm, analyze situations as they happened. She respected that people looked to him as their leader in times of crisis and to see him so broken, she was extremely concerned. Who or what could've done this to him?

"Well, taking your advice into consideration, I still choose to leave." He could see the annoyance flash across Caitlin's face, but he remained hard-headed. Every movement he made took every ounce of strength and energy he had, but he was moving towards the elevator with Caitlin behind him, making sure he didn't fall over. Just as they were in front of the elevator, Oliver stopped and looked at her. "Thank you." Caitlin looked at him confused.

"For what?"

"For helping me. For making sure that I wasn't going to die and not contacting my team or yours." He gave her a small smile and extended his hand.

"Of course Oliver. Try not to get into anything to strenuous. I'm still really worried about your condition, just walking is dangerous." She voiced her concern, but returned the smile. Caitlin was unsure of what came over her, but instead of shaking his hand, she gave him a very light hug as to avoid hurting him further. Oliver gave a small grunt of surprise, but ultimately returned the gesture. Just then, they heard the elevator ding and saw Barry walk out. They broke the hug, but Barry had seen what occurred and gave a very confused look.

"Oliver? Hey, always good to see you, but uh, what's going on, you ok?"

"Hey Barry, I just had a question to ask Caitlin."

"A question that caused you to travel 600 miles to Central City?" Barry gave him a "yeah right" look.

"Well, what can I say. I'm someone who has to ask things face-to-face." Oliver gave him a slight smile. "Anyway, I really have to be going now." He excused himself, limping slightly into the elevator. Barry caught the limp and giving Oliver a confused, concerned look, he asked.

"You sure you're ok?"

"Never better Barry. See you around." The doors started to close and Caitlin caught a small glimpse of the darkness Oliver's eyes possessed before the doors shut completely. He was definitely hiding something and she was determined to find out what.

Ok, this is horrible. Lay it on me. I honestly haven't been able to get anything going creatively. I really was intrigued by the dynamic Oliver and Caitlin could have. Caitlin so afraid of her powers and Oliver afraid to reveal his past and what he feels and how he teaches. I feel like he could be someone Caitlin looks to as she learns to adapt with her powers and accept who she is. Something Oliver could be really helpful for. Anyway, leave a review and stay tuned for more!


	2. Chapter 2

What's up guys? I'm back! Again. I really need to stop disappearing. Or if I actually post this in a reasonable amount of time, I'm just going to sound like an idiot. So it looks like there are some that are actually intrigued by this and I'm not the only one who actually thought this was a good idea haha. Which is good because that means there's a reason to write. Hopefully you guys enjoy. Without further ado, here's chapter two.

"That was weird wasn't it? He didn't seem very Olivery." Barry stated, but Caitlin was in a world of her own. She couldn't shake that look of despair and darkness Oliver tried to conceal. "Hellooooo? Earth to Caitlin?" Caitlin shook out of her trance.

"Huh? What? Oh yeah." Completely oblivious to what Barry had been talking about. "Sorry Barry, but I have to go check on something." She stated before rushing out of the room.

"What the…" Caitlin ran as fast as she could, Oliver couldn't have gotten that far away. She exited the front of STAR Labs to see Oliver limping to his motorcycle.

"OLIVER!" She yelled out. He turned, those broken eyes piercing her to her very core. She shook, every fiber in her body telling her to run, but she stood her ground. It was obvious Oliver needed someone, "do you want to grab a coffee with me at my house?" _Everyone around you, everything you touch, dies._ Chase's words filled Oliver's head. He didn't want to ruin Caitlin. "Oliver?" Caitlin called out when he seemed to recede into himself.

"At your house? Caitlin…"

"I need to get cleaned up anyway, I haven't been able to go home all night. Plus you're in your Arrow suit, can't really go to Jitters."

"I don't think it's a good idea. It's probably best if I just get back to Star City." _What is he hiding?_

"And do what? Because last you told me, you didn't want the team to see you. Please, just a cup of coffee?" She gave him her best plea. His facial expressions remained stoic besides the darkness in his eyes and she couldn't read what he was thinking. He wanted to get coffee with her. His body ached and he longed for something to give him a burst of energy, but he also wanted to be alone.

"Just one coffee?" Instantly her face brightened and to Oliver, her smile was something infectious and despite what he was feeling, he couldn't help but curl his lips into a small smile. He composed himself before Caitlin saw and took her offer of support as they walked to her car. The car ride was awkward as Caitlin tried to not bring up Oliver's current state and Oliver not wanting to talk much. Oliver noticed how Caitlin kept stealing glances at him. He knew she was curious as to the chain of events that had led to this moment, but he didn't want to talk. He feared that Chase was right, that once people learned of his past, they would never be able to see him as anything but a monster. In his own thoughts, he never realized that Caitlin had been parked for about ten minutes.

She studied him. He was an enigma. Maybe it was because she was close to the people she normally worked with, but she could typically read people's thoughts and emotions, but Oliver… Oliver was someone else, something else. The only thing she could read was that darkness that kept flashing in his eyes and truth be told, it scared her. It looked like Oliver would snap any second and it could go two ways. He could break down and begin crying, which she had never seen, or second, despite his body's broken state, he could lash out and hurt her. When she realized he was stuck in his own thoughts and he wouldn't notice that they were at his house, she called his name.

"Oliver." Instantly he snapped out of his thoughts, his reflexes kicking in and looking at her in a speed that could've rivaled Barry. "Relax..." she said as she noticed his body tense, "I'm just letting you know we're here." She saw his body relax just slightly and they stepped out of her car and approached her apartment. What Caitlin saw next made her freeze and drop her keys, Amunet had scratched a message onto her door. Oliver who had been focusing on not falling over looked up.

"Is something wro…" his voice trailed off as he saw the message. "Caitlin, what danger are you in?" She snapped out of her fear and picked up her keys.

"It's nothing Oliver, nothing I can't handle at least." Her voice shaky at best. He wasn't sure what compelled him to do so, but Oliver grabbed her hand.

"Caitlin, it's not good to fight things on your own. Especially things that you're afraid of."

"That's rich coming from you." Her eyes wide immediately after she said it. "I'm sorry, I really didn't mean it like that."

"No, what you said is fair, but it's because of the things I've done that I can give you this advice. Do not fight this on your own." It felt like more needed to be said, but Oliver backed down, slipping his hand away from her's and wondering what had just taken place. This wasn't like him, but he deemed it because of the emotional and mental state he was at due to Chase. That was the only logical explanation he could think of. Caitlin turned around and fumbled with her keys. She wasn't sure what was happening, but something was definitely happening. She finally got her door open and was relieved to find her apartment still intact. After they both entered Caitlin offered to give Oliver first shower.

"The bathroom is just down the hall, I still have some of Ronnie's old clothes you could probably fit into so that you can get out of your Arrow suit." Oliver, too tired and weak to fight, thanked her and proceeded to the bathroom. Caitlin pulled out a new set of clothes and left it outside the bathroom and began making the coffee she had promised. She drank her cup, leaving Oliver's on the counter and sat on the sofa, waiting for Oliver to finish his long shower. Amunet was coming after her and she didn't know what to do. She was terrified of her powers, but without them, she wouldn't stand a chance against Amunet. _Do not fight this on your own._ What did Oliver mean not to fight it alone. Initially she thought it meant going to Barry and the team, but the way he said it, the way he gripped her hand, she felt like there was something more… Oliver Queen was something else. After thinking for what felt hours, she finally heard the water turn off and assumed he had taken so long because of his injuries. He came out looking cleaner, but still injured and she let him know a warm cup of coffee was waiting for him before going to take a shower herself. After his protest of coming to her place in the first place, she expected him to somehow be gone when she got out of the shower, but what awaited her surprised her. She walked out to see a knocked out Oliver on her sofa, half of his body slipping off the edge.

 _Poor thing… probably used all his energy walking and showering on his own._ She grabbed her spare bedding and helped him into a more comfortable position. Once finished, her couch was a mini bed and she smiled softly as she finally saw a more relaxed Oliver. After only seeing him so tense and defensive, to see him somehow peaceful, relaxed her and lowered her anxiety over Amunet. She climbed into her bed and despite the coffee and time, managed to fall asleep relatively easily.

Alright, so, there's chapter 2! Please leave an honest opinion letting me know what you guys thought. Reading over it, I'm really critical of my own writing and feel like I've rushed a lot of it along which is not good. If you guys have any comments or suggestions of your own, write it! It's great to get any type of feedback, and honestly, I'm willing to rewrite this chapter if you guys feel like it needs more work, so yeah. Alright, that's all for now, hope to see you soon in chapter 3!


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